Hundreds of Israeli men have resorted to selling their sperm to make ends meet amid the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report on Israel’s Channel 12 news. The donors include soldiers who were recently laid off from duty, and students and other workers who rely on the gig economy or who were put on unpaid leave. Public and private sperm banks in Israel pay thousands of shekels (a thousand shekels is equivalent to around $295) per donation and some have advertised during the economic crisis. Some sperm banks reported increases of up to 300 percent in recent weeks.